Feyenoord humiliate Ajax beating them 6-0 in Rotterdam
Ajax’s season reached a new low on Sunday as they lost 6-0 to archrivals Feyenoord. Igor Paixao and Yankuba Minteh each scored a double, with David Hancko and Quinten Timber scoring the other goals.
It was Feyenoord’s biggest win against Ajax and the first time in the Amsterdam club’s history that they didn’t score in two matches against the reigning champions.
Ajax started the match with Brian Brobbey on the bench. The striker has recovered from a hamstring injury that has kept him out for three weeks. Feyenoord was boosted by Bart Nieuwkoop passing a late fitness test to start.
The tone of the match was clear from the first minute, as the home side dominated. The first chance came when Calvin Stengs laid the ball back to Santiago Gimenez, who tried to shoot at the near post. It was saved by Geronimo Rulli.
The next chance came just four minutes later. Yankuba Minteh dribbled past Jorrel Hato before shooting from the byline rather than finding a teammate in the box. His shot was saved by Rulli.
Arne Slot’s side kept getting chances. Lutsharel Geertruida and Gimenez squandered big chances before they finally took the lead in the 34th minute.
Ahmetcan Kaplan lost the ball in a dangerous position to Minteh, who then played a perfect pass through to Igor Paixao. The finish was brilliant: a deft chip that went over Rulli and into the net. It was the Brazilian’s third goal against Ajax in his fourth game.
The Rotterdammers doubled their lead in the next attack. Nieuwkoop was played in after another error in possession, this time from Hato; the full-back found Minteh in the box. His shot was deflected by Kaplan into the far corner.
Despite being the third top scorer in the Eredivisie, Gimenez has not been at the same level he was last season, and it showed once more as he missed another significant chance to score. A free kick was chipped behind the Ajax backline to the Mexican striker, but he volleyed it far over.
It was 3-0 before halftime. Gimenez tried to overhead kick the ball toward the goal, but it found Hancko instead, who was on hand to head home from close range.
Ajax finished the half with zero shots on goal.
Minteh got his second of the game in the 56th minute. The Gambia winger curled the ball into the far corner, and no Ajax defender did their best to stop the shot.
Quinten Timber got himself on the scoresheet just after the hour mark. Again, Ajax lost the ball in a dangerous position and was punished for the third time in the match. Substitute Branco van den Boomen was the guilty party this time. Timber won the ball from him before shooting it into the far corner with a peach of a strike.
Four minutes later, it was 6-0. Geertruida won a scramble in front of goal before Paixao hit in off the bottom of the crossbar.
Feyenoord took off the attackers in the closing stages. They even thought they had scored a seventh, but Alireza Jahanbaksch’s goal was disallowed for offside.
It was the first time in Ajax’s history that they lost a match by a six-goal margin.
It was an apt ending to a tumultuous week for the Amsterdam club in a turbulent season. General Manager Alex Kroes was suspended on Tuesday for alleged insider trading. Another director, Michael van Praag, is now also accused of not registering his Ajax shares in time.